Congressionally chartered to serve blinded veterans. Enhances employment opportunities, assists in procuring benefits offered by public and private agencies, provides educational information and scholarships.

Army Special Operations Officer Steven Beres had completed numerous tours in the Middle East. Then came the fateful day when he was wounded by an RPG. Surgeons had to remove both of Steve's eyes, leaving him totally blind. The entire skeletal structure of his face was gone. Eventually it was replaced with 13 titanium plates from his upper lips to his eyebrows. The lower lip and chin are all that is left of the lower part of Steve's face.

During the long months of surgery and recuperation, Steve had time to imagine what his life without sight would be like and didn't like what he saw. "I thought I'd be sitting on the couch, listening to reruns on television and eating bonbons," Steve said.

Thankfully, soon after becoming blind, Steve became involved in the Blinded Veterans Association. According to Steve, "The thing I want to tell the newest generation of blinded veterans - whether they were blinded by combat injury or disease - is that BVA can help you get out and enjoy 99.9% of the things you enjoyed before you were blinded."

Like many blinded veterans, Steve has benefited from BVA's Operation Peer Support (OPS) initiative. He has whitewater kayaked. He has gone skydiving. He has done things some sighted people have never done!

That's what is so great about OPS. It helps BVA connect those who have experienced loss of vision recently with one another -- and also with those who traveled the same challenging road years ago.